Sermon for November 12th, 2017 - Revision history

Iraneal at 01:55, 11 November 2017

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Iraneal at 01:42, 11 November 2017

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Iraneal at 01:31, 11 November 2017

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Iraneal at 00:44, 11 November 2017

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Iraneal at 00:40, 11 November 2017

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Iraneal at 00:33, 11 November 2017

2017-11-11T00:33:36Z

Iraneal at 00:31, 11 November 2017

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Iraneal at 00:15, 11 November 2017

2017-11-11T00:15:55Z

Iraneal at 22:43, 10 November 2017

2017-11-10T22:43:51Z

Iraneal at 22:42, 10 November 2017

2017-11-10T22:42:20Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:55, 11 November 2017
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	And the final lesson: A good stew can help people, save people, and bring the near-dead back to life. When Jacob feeds his brother, we read that Esau "ate and drank, and rose and went his way." Not only that, but Esau lives and thrives and even helps his brother later in life when it's Jacob's turn to be in need.		And the final lesson: A good stew can help people, save people, and bring the near-dead back to life. When Jacob feeds his brother, we read that Esau "ate and drank, and rose and went his way." Not only that, but Esau lives and thrives and even helps his brother later in life when it's Jacob's turn to be in need.

−	We contribute to the stew, we give to the church because we know what it has given to us when we were hungry and near to death...and we want to share that healing, that life with others.	+	We contribute to the stew, we give to the church because we know what it has given to us when we were hungry and near to death...and we want to share that healing, that life with others. Even if we have never walked through the valley of the shadow of death, we know that someday we will. And so we contribute to the stew, we give to the church, because we know that in that day this community of saints will stand with us and by us, surrounding us with love and life and hope.
		+
		+	For Esau, no price is too high for the life that Jacob's stew offers, not even his birthright and all the wealth and privilege and possessions that come with it.
		+
		+	Jacob's stew is worth it.
		+
		+	So is ours.
		+
		+	What will you throw into such an amazing, life-giving stew?

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 So this month, as you consider what or how much you are willing to throw into the stew that is First Presbyterian Church, I'd like to draw your attention back to our story of Jacob's stew, and some good "stew"-ardship lessons we can glean from it.  Three, to be precise.
-The first lesson is this:  You don't have to be the oldest, the strongest, or the wealthiest to make a good stew.  Jacob is none of these things in the story, and yet he's the one making the stew.  I often hear church folks say things like, "if only we were a bigger church, a wealthier church, or a church with an xyz program."  But we don't have to be any of those things to be exactly the church God has called us to be.  For what it's worth, Jacob made bread and lentil (bean) stew.  Nothing fancy, but it was enough.
+The first lesson is this:  You don't have to be the oldest, the strongest, or the wealthiest to make a good stew.  Jacob is none of these things in the story, and yet he's the one making the stew.  I often hear church folks say things like, "if only we were a bigger church, a wealthier church, or a church with an xyz program."  But we don't have to be any of those things to be exactly the church God has called us to be.  For what it's worth, Jacob made bread and lentil (bean) stew.  Nothing fancy, but it was enough.  Likewise, our stew, our church, will be whatever you make it...and it will be enough.
-The second lesson is this:
+The second lesson is this: A good stew can open the door to new opportunities, and turn the world upside down.  God likes to do that trick, where the elder son serves the younger, where the last become first and the first become last.  But our part is to be ready.  When we give to the church, when we contribute to the stew, we are helping the church to be prepared for that day when God-given opportunity comes rushing into our door, hungry and open to what we have to offer.
-*A good stew can open the door to new opportunities and turn the world upside down.
+And the final lesson:  A good stew can help people, save people, and bring the near-dead back to life.  When Jacob feeds his brother, we read that Esau "ate and drank, and rose and went his way."  Not only that, but Esau lives and thrives and even helps his brother later in life when it's Jacob's turn to be in need.
-*A good stew can help people, and bring the near dead back to life.

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 It is also true that this story has all the markings of an etiological myth--an origin story meant not so much to convey actual historical people or events, but to explain where our people come from and how we relate to those people over there.  According to the story, the descendants of Jacob are the Israelites, and the descendants of Esau are the Edomites.  This story, then, is a convenient way of explaining why they are all such red, hairy, hunters, living by their strength; and why we are merchants who live in tents, bartering and exchanging goods, living by our wits.  And also why we think we have a better claim to the land, even though they are an older people and have been here longer.
 *A good stew can open the door to new opportunities and turn the world upside down.
 *A good stew can help people, and bring the near dead back to life.

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:44, 11 November 2017
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	It is also true that this story has all the markings of an etiological myth--an origin story meant not so much to convey actual historical people or events, but to explain where our people come from and how we relate to those people over there. According to the story, the descendants of Jacob are the Israelites, and the descendants of Esau are the Edomites. This story, then, is a convenient way of explaining why they are all such red, hairy, hunters, living by their strength; and why we are merchants who live in tents, bartering and exchanging goods, living by our wits. And also why we think we have a better claim to the land, even though they are an older people and have been here longer.		It is also true that this story has all the markings of an etiological myth--an origin story meant not so much to convey actual historical people or events, but to explain where our people come from and how we relate to those people over there. According to the story, the descendants of Jacob are the Israelites, and the descendants of Esau are the Edomites. This story, then, is a convenient way of explaining why they are all such red, hairy, hunters, living by their strength; and why we are merchants who live in tents, bartering and exchanging goods, living by our wits. And also why we think we have a better claim to the land, even though they are an older people and have been here longer.

−	*	+
−	*A good stew can open the door to new opportunities.	+	*You don't have to be the oldest, the strongest, or the wealthiest to make a good stew.
−	*A good stew ~~has the power to~~ bring the near-dead back to life!	+	*A good stew can open the door to new opportunities and turn the world upside down.
		+	*A good stew can help people, and bring the near dead back to life.

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:40, 11 November 2017
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	It is also true that this story has all the markings of an etiological myth--an origin story meant not so much to convey actual historical people or events, but to explain where our people come from and how we relate to those people over there. According to the story, the descendants of Jacob are the Israelites, and the descendants of Esau are the Edomites. This story, then, is a convenient way of explaining why they are all such red, hairy, hunters, living by their strength; and why we are merchants who live in tents, bartering and exchanging goods, living by our wits. And also why we think we have a better claim to the land, even though they are an older people and have been here longer.		It is also true that this story has all the markings of an etiological myth--an origin story meant not so much to convey actual historical people or events, but to explain where our people come from and how we relate to those people over there. According to the story, the descendants of Jacob are the Israelites, and the descendants of Esau are the Edomites. This story, then, is a convenient way of explaining why they are all such red, hairy, hunters, living by their strength; and why we are merchants who live in tents, bartering and exchanging goods, living by our wits. And also why we think we have a better claim to the land, even though they are an older people and have been here longer.
		+
		+	*
		+	*A good stew can open the door to new opportunities.
		+	*A good stew has the power to bring the near-dead back to life!

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 Now, to be fair to Esau, in an ancient hunter-gatherer society, going hunting was not something leisurely.  The life of the tribe (and availability of any future stews) depended on it.  It would have been a physically intensive activity--one that spanned many miles and even days.  It is absolutely plausible that one might come in from such a trip at the point of near starvation.  What's an inheritance worth if you don't survive to actually inherit it?  So perhaps Esau's seemingly rash decision wasn't so rash after all.
-It is also true that this story has all the markings of an etiological myth--an origin story meant not so much to convey actual historical people or events, but to explain where our people come from and how we relate to those people over there.  According to the story, the descendants of Jacob are the Israelites, and the descendants of Esau are the Edomites.  This story, then, is a convenient way of explaining why they are all such red, hairy, hunters, and why we are merchants who live in tents, bartering and exchanging goods.  And why we think we have a better claim to the land, even though they are an older people and have been here longer.
+It is also true that this story has all the markings of an etiological myth--an origin story meant not so much to convey actual historical people or events, but to explain where our people come from and how we relate to those people over there.  According to the story, the descendants of Jacob are the Israelites, and the descendants of Esau are the Edomites.  This story, then, is a convenient way of explaining why they are all such red, hairy, hunters, living by their strength; and why we are merchants who live in tents, bartering and exchanging goods, living by our wits.  And also why we think we have a better claim to the land, even though they are an older people and have been here longer.
-−
-What does any of this have to do with stew?  Or Stewardship?  I'm going to come back to that.

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 ==Stew(ardship) – Jacob’s Stew==
-Today marks the beginning of our church's annual stewardship campaign.  If you grew up in the church, you're probably familiar with that term, "stewardship."  If not, it's kind of like the NPR or PBS annual pledge drive--please don't change the channel!  Like those institutions, we rely on generous donations from our members in order to keep the building running, feed the pastor's family, and provide the programs and services that are so meaningful to so many in our community.
+Today marks the beginning of our church's annual stewardship campaign.  If you grew up in the church, you're probably familiar with that term, "stewardship."  If not, it's kind of like the NPR or PBS annual pledge drive (please don't change the channel!).  Like those institutions, we rely on generous donations from our members in order to keep the building running, feed the pastor's family, and provide the programs and services that are so meaningful to so many in our community.
 Growing up in my six-person family of origin, there was never any question if, whether, or which of the evening leftovers would go into the giant stew-pot that lived in the freezer. Each night, everything that wasn't eaten for dinner got added to that stew pot and frozen, waiting to be thawed, reheated, and reclaimed at the end of the week. The only real question was how this particular leftover ingredient or that would affect the taste and character of the stew when the pot was full. And despite some highly questionable additions (like pancakes, or mashed potatoes, or applesauce) somehow the stew always ended up being surprisingly good--and different every week!

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 Today marks the beginning of our church's annual stewardship campaign.  If you grew up in the church, you're probably familiar with that term, "stewardship."  If not, it's kind of like the NPR or PBS annual pledge drive--please don't change the channel!  Like those institutions, we rely on generous donations from our members in order to keep the building running, feed the pastor's family, and provide the programs and services that are so meaningful to so many in our community.
-But why do we call it a "stewardship" campaign, and what does that word, "stewardship" mean?
+But why do we call it a "stewardship" campaign, and what does that word, "stewardship" mean?  Well, it comes from the Old English word
 Growing up in my six-person family of origin, there was never any question if, whether, or which of the evening leftovers would go into the giant stew-pot that lived in the freezer. Each night, everything that wasn't eaten for dinner got added to that stew pot and frozen, waiting to be thawed, reheated, and reclaimed at the end of the week. The only real question was how this particular leftover ingredient or that would affect the taste and character of the stew when the pot was full. And despite some highly questionable additions (like pancakes, or mashed potatoes, or applesauce) somehow the stew always ended up being surprisingly good--and different every week!

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:42, 10 November 2017
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	==Stew(ardship) – Jacob’s Stew==		==Stew(ardship) – Jacob’s Stew==
		+	Today marks the beginning of our church's annual stewardship campaign. If you grew up in the church, you're probably familiar with that term, "stewardship." If not, it's kind of like the NPR or PBS annual pledge drive--please don't change the channel! Like those institutions, we rely on generous donations from our members in order to keep the building running, feed the pastor's family, and provide the programs and services that are so meaningful to so many in our community.
		+
		+	But why do we call it a "stewardship" campaign, and what does that word, "stewardship" mean?
		+
		+
		+
		+	Growing up in my six-person family of origin, there was never any question if, whether, or which of the evening leftovers would go into the giant stew-pot that lived in the freezer. Each night, everything that wasn't eaten for dinner got added to that stew pot and frozen, waiting to be thawed, reheated, and reclaimed at the end of the week. The only real question was how this particular leftover ingredient or that would affect the taste and character of the stew when the pot was full. And despite some highly questionable additions (like pancakes, or mashed potatoes, or applesauce) somehow the stew always ended up being surprisingly good--and different every week!